Enterprise AI as Workflows

Google used Cloud Next on April 22 in Las Vegas to pitch AI agents less as chatbots and more as software that can move work across business systems. (usnews.com) The company introduced Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform, a new Google Cloud product for building, running, governing, and connecting agents inside companies. Google said it folds together model tools from Vertex AI with new features for integration, orchestration, DevOps, and security. (cloud.google.com) In a separate product post, Google said Gemini Enterprise now combines an employee-facing app with the new agent platform, aiming at “complex, multi-step work processes” instead of one-off prompts. TechCrunch reported the platform is aimed at information technology and technical users, not casual office workers. (cloud.google.com) (techcrunch.com) An AI agent is software that can take several steps toward a goal, such as pulling data from one system, making a decision, and sending the result to another system. Google’s pitch is that enterprises want those agents wired into customer records, supply chains, and internal tools, not sitting in a chat window by themselves. (cloud.google.com) (usnews.com) Google paired that message with named partners and customers. Reuters reported new tie-ups involving Salesforce, Merck, and SAP, while Google said it is integrating Gemini models more deeply into platforms from Salesforce, SAP, ServiceNow, and Palantir. (usnews.com) (cloud.google.com) The company also put money behind the sales model. Google Cloud announced a $750 million fund on April 22 for its partner ecosystem, saying the money will support agent development, adoption, and training across its 120,000-member channel. (googlecloudpresscorner.com) That fund is structured around consultancies and other resellers rather than direct sales alone. The Next Web reported Google is offering items such as proof-of-concept funding, cloud credits, deployment rebates, and forward-deployed engineers, and cited partner economics showing consultancies capture $7.05 for every $1 of cloud spend. (thenextweb.com) (techcrunch.com) Google has been moving in this direction for more than a year. At Cloud Next 2024, it introduced Vertex AI Agent Builder as a tool for creating enterprise agents; the 2026 launch turns that earlier product line into a broader platform with governance and cross-system controls. (techcrunch.com) (cloud.google.com) Google is also betting that enterprise customers will want agents from multiple vendors to work together. Its Gemini Enterprise materials say the system supports Google-made, third-party, and in-house agents in one place, and builds on the Agent2Agent protocol Google introduced last year to let agents communicate across platforms. (cloud.google.com 1) (cloud.google.com 2) The result is a more specific enterprise AI pitch than “ask a bot a question.” Google is selling a managed layer for workflow software, then paying partners to help large companies wire it into the systems they already run. (cloud.google.com) (usnews.com)